Embodiments relate to a device, a system, and a method with a burst mode laser source system forming laser-induced radio frequency (LIRF) energy.
Traditional laser sources may be configured to have either high-average power or high-peak power. However, the laser configurations fall short from providing both characteristics of high-average power and high-peak power. For some applications, laser sources which provide a high-peak power with a high-average power burst are needed. The high-peak power is generally defined by multiple joules per pulse, where the pulse is <=10 nanoseconds. High-average power is approximately >=1000 Watts (1000 Joules/sec.).
In order to achieve high-peak and high-average power, traditionally the power supplies for the laser source would be scaled for the thermal loads of the high-average power. The short pulse widths might be limited to a few hundred picoseconds and repetition rates in the range of 50 to 100 Hertz (Hz). This solution is very expensive. However, for some applications which require shorter pulse widths, higher repetition rates are required in the range of kilohertz (kHz) or higher.
Current laser source designs have unsolvable thermal problems which drive optical instability and poor or worse operation of the laser amplifiers causing mechanical problems. The current laser source design may provide for a higher repetition rate and highest energy per pulse to pump other materials (i.e., infrared (IR) and Titanium Sapphire) to generate increased peak powers, but only at the repetition rate of the pump laser. Typical repetition rates would be 10 to 20 Hz pumps and multi-joule energy at a few hundred picoseconds to a few nanoseconds. This pumping laser would energize an additional stage of oscillation with higher optical bandwidth and may utilize chirped pulse amplification (CPA) yield with temporally shorter pulses.